The desirability of intensifying the flavor of foodstuffs with flavor-enhancing materials is well known. The most important and best known flavor enhancer is common salt (sodium chloride). However, the incorporation of salt and similar water-soluble materials into non-aqueous foods, i.e. fats or oils, is not easily accomplished.
In the case of butter or margarine, the incorporation of common salt presents no problem because there is an aqueous phase present in which the salt is dissolved and thus it can be uniformly dispersed throughout the composition. However, special griddling or grilling fats or flavored oils contain no water or aqueous phase in which to disperse the salt. Because of the significantly higher density of the salt, the salt settles out of a liquid fat or oil quickly. Where a solid fat, or fluid fat containing triglyceride hardstock, is heated, the salt also settles out of the liquefied fat or oil quickly.
The uniform delivery from an oil or fat product of solid or crystalline flavor enhancers, such as salt, to foodstuffs is particularly desirable in processes where the fat or oil is heated, as in the case of specialty griddling and flavored fats. However, utilization of butter or margarine to deliver the salt is undesirable in such processes because the salt remains with the aqueous phase which separates upon heating. Thus, the salt cannot be delivered uniformly to the foodstuff, particularly in institutional cooking. Additionally, the aqueous phase tends to cause objectionable spattering upon heating. Also, butters and margarines burn or brown on continued exposure to high temperatures.
The problem of incorporating salt into water-free fat compositions is noted in U.S. Pat. No. 3,271,166 to Van Leeuwen, issued September 1977, wherein a fat is mixed with other ingredients in a pre-mix tank. The Van Leeuwen patent notes that some improvement can be obtained by milling and sieving the salt. However, the Van Leeuwen patent also observes that milling and sieving add considerably to the cost of the process without yielding wholly satisfactory results. Instead, the Van Leeuwen patent utilizes an aqueous slurry of whey powder, salt and optionally milk powder, which is dried to form grains not exceeding 60 microns, preferably 50 to 60 microns. The dried product is then worked in a pre-mix tank with the fat to obtain the uniform suspension thereof.
One method for controlling the settling rate of a flavor enhancer in a liquefied fat or oil is by encapsulation. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,096,281 to Young et al., issued June 20, 1978, which discloses a method for producing a flavored popcorn by heating a combination of popcorn kernels, a cooking medium such as fat or oil, and an encapsulated flavoring substance having an average diameter of about 5 to 25 microns. The combination used in the Young et al patent can also include microfine salt of unspecified particle size, as disclosed in Examples 2 and 3. To obtain uniformity of distribution, the density of the encapsulated flavoring substance in the Young et al patent is controlled so as to be as close as possible to the density of the cooking medium. However, encapsulation of ionic flavors such as salt generally cannot be used as a means for density control. The typical method for encapsulating substances is by spray drying which requires initial formation of a stable emulsion. Ionic substances such as salt tend to break the necessary emulsion and thus can be encapsulated only through the use of special techniques.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a liquefiable fat or oil having salt or other non-encapsulated flavor enhancer incorporated therein such that the salt or flavor enhancer remains suspended in the oil or fat when liquid for a commercially acceptable period of time.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a fat or oil composition, which, when heated, uniformly delivers the salt or other non-encapsulated flavor enhancer to the foodstuff.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a fat or oil composition having salt or other non-encapsulated flavor enhancer incorporated therein which is substantially free of water or an aqueous phase.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a room-temperature pourable fat or oil composition containing a storage- or shelf-stable suspension of salt or other non-encapsulated flavor enhancer.
These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent in the description that follows.